Hart Lambur, CoFounder of Across, just announced a first in DeFi.
After 4 years building Across, inventing cross-chain intents, and making 2-second bridging table stakes, Risk Labs is proposing to convert ACX tokenholders into equity shareholders of a traditional U.S. C-corp. Kinda the reversal of all we’ve been talking about on The Edge Pod in terms of tokenized ownership and converting equity ownership to tokens.
Part of their reasoning is token and DAO structures are blocking institutional partnerships. Over the years, Risk Labs has maintained a "token-purist" view: no private company, only foundation operations, everything built in public. But as Across deepens enterprise partnerships, they claim the structure has become a liability. Traditional companies struggle to sign enforceable contracts with Cayman foundations. Revenue agreements are complex. The relationship between DAOs, tokenholders, and foundations is legally tenuous with no requirement that foundations act in tokenholders' interests.
This proposal offers ACX holders two paths: exchange tokens for equity at 1:1 ratio, or sell tokens for USDC at $0.04375 (a 25% premium to the 30-day average). Large holders (5M+ ACX) convert directly to cap table equity. Smaller holders roll into a no-fee SPV with a low $10k minimum to maximize inclusivity. The buyout window stays open for 6 months, financed by Across's $25M treasury (stablecoins and other non-ACX cryptoassets), roughly equal to the market cap prior to the proposal announcement. Since the announcement, the fully diluted valuation (FDV) shot up to $70M and is now hovering just above $52M at $0.052/ACX.
But the bigger vision is where Across is heading: stablecoin infrastructure. In a new Edge Podcast, Hart not only discusses the reasoning behind this proposal but also how he sees stablecoin fragmentation accelerating (USDC, USDT, USDH, MUSD, USDe) and users demanding "$1 should equal $1." No more losing 1% to bridge between chains. Across is building a free stablecoin movement powered by intents, where issuers pay fees instead of users. It's already live with Hyperliquid: send $1M USDC, receive $1M USDH, zero cost.
This is DeFi’s first major experiment unwinding tokenization. The community temp check runs through March 25th, with a snapshot vote April 2nd. Hart's doubling down on Across, but moving forward, most likely as a private company.
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🔗 Guest Links 🔗
► Across website: across.to
► Across proposal: forum.across.to/t/the-bridge-across/2097
► Hart's thoughts on the token buyout: x.com/hal2001/status/2031737518505537907?s=20
► Across on X: x.com/AcrossProtocol
► Hart on X: x.com/hal2001
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